ISSN:
1745-4581
Source:
Blackwell Publishing Journal Backfiles 1879-2005
Topics:
Biology
Notes:
This research aimed to compare Clostridium perfringens with Escherichia coli and enterococci as indicators of fecal contamination of raw ground beef. The first experiment evaluated the natural occurrence of C. perfringens, E. coli and enterococci in raw ground beef. The second experiment compared the linear regression curve of C. perfringens, E. coli and enterococci from ground beef intentionally spiked with bovine feces at different levels (0, 0.1, 0.3, 0.5 and 0.7% [w/w]). The biochemical profiles of C. perfringens, E. coli and Enterococcus faecalis from raw ground beef and raw ground beef spiked with feces were also studied. The results of the first experiment showed that the prevalence rates of C. perfringens, E. coli and enterococci in raw ground beef were 45.0, 79.0 and 60.0%, respectively. The results of the second experiment showed that C. perfringens, E. coli and enterococci have a positive correlation with the level of inoculated fecal material. However, the average R2for C. perfringens, E. coli and enterococci models were 0.86, 0.71 and 0.93, respectively. The results also showed that the biochemical profiles of C. perfringens, E. coli and E. faecalis cultures from raw ground beef spiked with feces had high variations, and differ from those for the cultures isolated from raw ground beef. The compiled data indicate that C. perfringens should be considered a viable alternative to current fecal indicators.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-4581.2005.00023.x
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